Crime opt-outs will create more victims

The EU arrest warrant was used to arrest Marek Harcar in 2008. He assaulted, abducted, brutally raped and murdered my beloved daughter and then fled back to Slovakia. Thanks to the dedication of the Strathclyde police, the cooperation of the Slovakian police and the EU arrest warrant, this serial criminal was brought back to the UK and is serving a minimum of 25 years in prison and will then be deported. When the lord advocate announced his criminal conviction at the end of his trial (and 13 previous convictions, at least four for violence), I thought a mistake had been made in letting him into the UK. I was appalled to learn that it was the norm for EU citizens to come in unchecked.

Since then I have met with two home secretaries and written to many ministers, MPs and MEPs in my attempts to have changes made in the law so that other families' lives would not be torn apart like ours. I have been given many assurances. I know that improvements have slowly taken place and that millions have been pledged by the EU to member states to enable them to participate in the European Criminal Record Information Service.

Now I hear that the government is "minded" to opt out of scores of EU justice measures (Report, 16 October). I am more than disgusted. It shows total disregard for victims everywhere and for the increased number of citizens throughout the EU who will become victims if this proposal goes ahead. Police investigations will be severely hampered and fighting some crimes well nigh impossible. Is this another way to enable government to further reduce police budgets? I am totally bewildered and can think of no logical reason for this.I thought that in a big society folks were meant to look our for each other. Our big society will become more and more splintered, with more criminals, more victims, more fear. This proposal may well be merely a sop to the right wing, it is terrifying to contemplate that it may be more than that, but if so it is a very dangerous one indeed.Beatrice JonesAddress supplied